Stanford's Dawkins denies interest in Illinois job

STANFORD

Published 4:00 am, Sunday, March 25, 2012

Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins denies that he's a candidate for the Illinois job, but he wouldn't comment on his legal efforts to reclaim $671,000 he is owed by two other former Duke stars, Christian Laettner and Brian Davis.

Dawkins' team, which finished seventh in the Pac-12, has caught fire in the NIT. A 28-point rout of Nevada on Wednesday sent the Cardinal (24-11) into Tuesday's semifinals against Massachusetts (25-11) at New York's Madison Square Garden.

The fourth-year Stanford coach was reported by the Chicago Tribune during the past week to be among the coaches Illinois is considering to replace Bruce Weber, who was fired after the Illini completed a 17-15 season by winning just two of their final 14 games.

"I have not had any contact with them," Dawkins said Friday. Asked if his representative had been in contact with Illinois, he said, "Not to the best of my knowledge."

Later he had a Stanford spokesman call The Chronicle to emphasize that he was not interested in the job.

All of them are African Americans. Thomas is believed to be under pressure to hire a black coach, at least partly because Illinois is one of three Big Ten schools never to have hired an African American football or basketball coach.

Dawkins, however, seems settled at Stanford. His program is on the rise, and, with his excellent recruiting class of 2010 buttressed by the addition of stellar freshman guard Chasson Randle, the Cardinal should contend for the Pac-12 title for the next two years.

His second and third seasons were disappointing, but athletic director Bob Bowlsby gave him a two-year contract extension last summer as a vote of confidence.

On another financial front, Dawkins hasn't been quite so fortunate. He was among the many former pro athletes who invested in the commercial real estate projects of Laettner and Davis, who had followed him to Duke. Dawkins' suit is among several seeking repayment of about $30 million in loans.

Dawkins' attorney, Ugo Colella, has twice filed motions to find Laettner and Davis in contempt of court for failing to disclose their assets and liabilities. On March 16, a judge in Washington, D.C., rejected the contempt request, but Colella told the Durham (N.C.) Herald-Sun that the judge made it clear to Laettner and Davis that "this was serious and they needed to step up."

"I have no comment on it," Dawkins told The Chronicle. Nor would he comment on how the case has affected his relationship with Laettner and Davis.